Frugal Fall Fun With My Favorite Hobby - Wine!

You know what’s really scary? There’s only 87 days left until Christmas. I don’t know about y’all but this is the exact time of year where I get SUPER excited for all of the fun social events coming up - wine festivals, apple picking, winery visits, Thanksgiving…did I mention wineries? But at the same exact time, I can literally feel my wallet running for cover.

During this time of year this is what I’m hoping my bank account looks like:

Here’s the reality of the situation:

There is good news here though! You can still maintain your social life and all that is wonderful about Fall without spending a fortune.

My first piece of advice – start tracking your expenses. We do this in my household and it really helps you see exactly where your money goes. There are awesome, free tools out there you can use like this one from Personal Capital. I know it’s hard to adult sometimes – but just do it.

One of my absolute favorite things to do is throw wine parties with my neighborhood friends. And you know what? You can totally do this on a budget! The first tip is to share the expense between everyone who shows up. Have each person (or couple) bring one bottle of wine and some sort of food to share. You’ll end up with an awesome spread and a ton of wine – without all the cost.

Since we are really focused on being frugal here though, put a rule in place that each bottle of wine must cost less than $10. I’m imagining many of you saying “TEN DOLLARS!? You must be crazy!” Trust me, when it comes to wine, I never lie. I spend many hours wandering up and down the aisles of wine at various stores and trust me – there are plenty of bottles of wine out there for under ten bucks.

First of all, I feel like this goes without saying but I’m going to put it out there. PLEASE do not bring any sort of Arbor Mist or Franzia to this party. Unless you are a legit, broke ass college student, this wine is unacceptable. You can do better. Here’s how:

Garnacha de Fuego

Rex Goliath Zinfandel

The Naked Grape Pinot Grigio

La Promenade Provence Rosé

Now that you’ve got the wine, here are a few ideas of delicious fall inspired recipes that won’t break the bank. You should easily be able to snag a bottle of vino plus food to share for less than $20 total!

Apple nachos

Pumpkin pie cheesecake dip

Pumpkin Pecan Baked Brie